Date: Wed, 11 Aug 2010 10:16:35 -0700
Reply-To: "Mike \"Rocket J Squirrel\"" <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: "Mike \"Rocket J Squirrel\"" <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: In Missoula, overfilled oil UPDATE
In-Reply-To: <4c532cd7.e9c9e50a.0772.6634@mx.google.com>
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Just got back from the mechanic's shop. He took a look and confirmed his
guess that the leak was coming from the transmission. He had previously
noted that the differential came up close to dry when he first met
Mellow Yellow in '08. Late last year during servicing he noticed the
gear oil was again low.
The leak isn't big enough to be an immediate problem, so Mrs Squirrel
and I can go camping next week, as planned. Then I'll be taking the van
in for a week to have the transmission pulled, rebuilt at German
Transaxle, with all new seals put in.
Cost of ownership of a 26 year-old vehicle, I reckon. Thus it goes.
--
Rocky J Squirrel
84 Westfalia: Mellow Yellow ("The Electrical Banana")
74 Westrailia: (Ladybug Trailer company, San Juan Capistrano, Calif.)
Bend, OR
KG6RCR
David Beierl wrote:
> At 01:47 PM 7/30/2010 Friday, Mike \"Rocket J Squirrel\" wrote:
>> My trust in Steve's Place in Bend, Ore., just went down a whole bunch.
>> Last night, when I was unhooking the Westralia from the van, I noticed
>> the safety chain was oily. The dipstick revealed that the chimps had
>> overfilled the oil when they changed it last week.
>
> Dear Mr. Squirrel,
>
> Spoke to Steve. His advice:
>
> a) We put in 4 1/2 qt oil so it's not overfull, or else you added
> some. Check it when stone cold.
>
> b) [from me] Does the oil on the stick smell like gasoline? If so
> could be washing down the cylinder walls. It seems unlikely to me, but
> there are people I trust who are firm that this can add more than a
> quart (of gasoline) to the crankcase under the wrong circumstances.
>
> c) You have a known transmission leak, is this causing the visible
> external oil?
>
> d) Call him. (541) 318-9884
>
> Does that help? He was definitely not receptive to the idea that the
> motor had been overfilled. ;-) I didn't insist, just asked what he'd
> like you to do, and the above is the result. I didn't for example ask
> how precisely he *knew* that they'd put in 4 1/2 and not 5 1/2 qts.
>
> Yours,
> David
> ps -- He'd never heard of Jack Elliott, so there was a bit of a stumble
> at the beginning.
>
> pps -- If you want to take some oil out, see if Missoula has a hardware
> store (all right, I'm pretty sure it does) and get some pvc tubing that
> will just go in the dipstick hole, and siphon some out. Remember to
> spit if you get a mouthful of oil.
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